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A new article from Time explores the iPhone's potential to dominate the cell phone gaming market and eventually compete with dedicated handheld gaming devices like Nintendo's DS and Sony's PSP. The article includes comments from game designers and analysts.

Key to the iPhone's success as a gaming platform is a deep portfolio of titles that takes advantage of the device's coolest attributes, such as its tilt sensor. The most popular application in the entire App Store today is the free maze game Labyrinth, created by Illusion Labs in Sweden, in part because it responds satisfyingly to even the slightest hand movement as players direct a virtual ball through various mazes. Another sought out game, Sega's $9.99 Super Monkey Ball, works similarly — players tilt the device to navigate a series of increasingly precarious platforms. And the $0.99 ColorTilt by IMAK Creations lets you create paintings onscreen using your fingers as a brush; shifting the iPhone ever-so-slightly adjusts your brush color.

But can a cell phone ever really compete with dedicated handhelds like the Nintendo DS? Game developer Young says yes. "You have a DS and you have a telephone. Why not buy just one?" he says. What's more, a third of all iPhone owners are already the videogame industry's best customers, aged 26 and under. And there is no reason why game play can't be as rich on the iPhone as it is on the most popular handhelds. "The iPhone has excellent hardware in it. It is as capable as the DS or PSP," says Greg Yardley of Pinch Media, which builds free tools for iPhone developers.

Time: Can The iPhone Rule Gaming?

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